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Topic: How many do you take fishing? (Read 703 times)

When I hit the water for crappies I take a bucket with four plano boxes in it that carry almost 20 different baits in several different color schemes. My primary box has 16 cells in it split between Do-It's 1.5" Thump-It and a Bass tackle 1 1/2" stinger bait that has a 1/4" diameter body that's 3/8" long and the rest of the length is tail. Another box has as many cells and is split equally between a foreign 2" ringed bodied paddletail and a 1 1/2" Jacobs Silverfish Minnow with the horizontal tail. The other two boxes carry the remaining various baits which in part include the Do-It 2 1/2" Thumper Fry, 2 1/2" Small Fry, the 2 1/2" Stinger Wutzit, 1 3/4" and 2" Essential Paddletails, Nano Frys, Ice Ticklers and Wax Wigglers along with some select colors of store bought 1 1/2" tubes and random baits made from other's molds. Except for the Wigglers and Ticklers I keep each color cell full. I also have several bags of larger baits that tag along in the pail. I also lug around several jars of 1" Gulp Minnows.

Now if I add jigheads I carry mostly collar-less ball head jigs in sizes from 1/64 to 3/32, the bulk in 1/32 and 1/24. I also carry the Diner Shiner now in 1/16 and 1/8 along with several head designs and weights using the Wacky Hooks and in many color schemes. Except for the 1/64, many of these heads wear the keeper wire, however the 1/32 I am perfectly fine not having the wire. Why? No idea, just never bothered. All of my 1/64, 1/32, and 1/24 jigs ride comfortably in Rose Creek fly boxes. The 1/16, 3/32, and 1/8 heads ride in boxes I make from Pacemaker packaging gotten from a local hospital. I glue in strips of 1/2" square foam insulation and the hooks stick firmly in the strips. I hate jigs rattling around and this method eliminates the rattle in the smaller jigs.

In season I also throw in a plano full of peanut cranks, small crank baits that can dive to about three feet on a normal retrieve. These tiny cranks are murder to cast so I'll rig up a three way with a light dropper weight, a short leash and fish these while very slowly moving the boat over suspended fish. Deadly at times.

I find floats to be seasonal, but I carry a pile of Thill Mini Stealth floats, both sliding fixed and the clip on in sizes 2 and 4. In cold water [think immediate ice out type of cold water] I fish a float because I find that fish suspend at very specific depths then more than at any other time. I like my offering to go just barely above their eye level so seeing the bait and the act of hitting the bait happen in a very compact amount of space. As water cools down in the fall the bite can migrate right back to being suspended and a float is again called for to keep the offering at specific depths. I don't very often find a float needed in warmer water but they are always along....at least some are.

The bucket can get cramped and if needed I bring two. My fishing style is what I call fast.... and being caught short on goodies is not on my list so I will bring two if things look like the extra may be warranted. I start with a mainstay color and head size but if things don't happen I am quick to start working colors and head sizes. Personally I find plastic color schemes more important that head color. I seldom use the chartreuse or yellow or orange or hot pink colored heads unless all else has puked out. Most of the time I start with a purple/extremely fine blue glitter head color I make and every now and again switch to a blue/very fine blue glitter that I make. The plastics I'll run thru the colors fairly fast, then change to a different profile or maybe a slightly longer or shorter bait. I can bulk up or skinny down in a blink as the fish tell me what they prefer. My plastics and generally my jigs will not have eyes. I may and take pictures of jigs and plastics with eye, but for my own use I do not feel that I do any better with eyes compared to without.

Regions can certainly play a large part in what people take to the water with them. I know southern anglers fish much larger baits than I do even though I do catch quite a few big crappies while walleye fishing using wayyyy bigger baits than I would target crappies with. The colors used by people in other parts of the country are interesting too. Years ago I had the honor of hopping in the boat with a fella named Dick Cavanaugh from Wabasha Minnesota on the Mississippi River. Dick was the original "Grumpy Old Man" which the movies were fashioned after. Other than being able to smoke a cigar down to where his lips would be on fire, Dick was a master at big walleyes. His baitshop under his café had huge bait tanks of cement. One always had his most recent walleye catches in it and nothing under 10 pounds did I ever see. On the couple time I fished with Dick he had us set up with #13 and #15 Rapalas on three ways using 2 ounce sinkers. His technique was to slow troll into the current along the base of shoreline rip-rap and the fish we caught had no trouble dining on those long baits. The memorable part was the crappies that hit on those long suckers too....more crappies that walleyes in fact. Size can matter and if a person gets stuck in a rut with smaller baits they can miss out on some interesting fishing.

This is how I approach the silver sides. How do you guys gear up for them?

Crappies are for sissies so I'll never have anything in the boat for them. Bass fishing is another story. I can't carry enough. For the most part it depends on the season. For this spring I'll set up a rod for a jerk bait, a spinnerbait, rattle trap/ crank bait and a chatter bait.

I have tackle bags for panfish livebait, crappie, walleye and bass. Each bag has approx. five or six plano boxes in it. The trouble is finding something when I need it! Usually it's in the box I left at home.

From now thru about mid may, I primarily crappie fish. If fishin from shore I will usually load up my backpack with 4 of the long plano boxes. 3 of them will be filled with various crappie baits and jig heads and 1 for bass. If fishing from my float tube I usually fill the side compartments with smaller boxes (and plastic baggies). Still haven't worked out all the kinks in my float tube fishing yet, but I am getting there. In any event I always keep my other boxes locked up in my truck in case I want to trek back and change things up a bit.

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I find it incredible that I have to explain to a grown American citizen that taking a knee during the National Anthem is disrespectful.

I have cut way down on the ammount of baits I take. Most days 2-3 medium plano boxes and 1-2 bait binders of plastics are all I need. I still have a good variety, just less of each thing. I like to make my boxes up the night before and bring only what I need based on season and lake I'll be fishing.

You guys who have managed to streamline your tackle to a select few baits make me truly envious. I have an entire hatch in my triton full of the deep Plano boxes that are absolutely crammed full of hard baits, spinnerbaits, boxes of jigs, and my back compartments are completely dedicated to my bulk soft plastics.